"CE" mark self certification

[GaryAviation]

Hi, this is GaryAviation. Thanks to all of you who have provided a post since last Spring. Please allow me to provide you folks with an update on my company’s progress with “CE” certification.

We hired a professional firm here in the US to evaluate and test our product to meet the required CE standards. Based on their evaluation of our product and their recommendation of the EMC standard; we tested and certified our product to the EMC standard and our product passed. Great. We then “Self-Certified”. Great.

Then one of our customers challenged our certification (one of over a 100) by saying that we need the LVD standard. None of our other customers had a problem with what we did. To make a long story short, we went back to the professional firm we hired and asked why they did not recommend the LVD the first time around?? They answered that “Anyone in the UK can challenge your CE certification. They can also demand that you test to any standard that they think is relevant.”

Folks, please excuse me, but this is a big pile of crap! In a nutshell (and I use that term for several reasons – this whole thing is NUTS), it seems to me that, as a user of the CE self-certification, there are several issues that need addressing. Allow me to explain.

1. The intent of the CE certification seems to me to be a great idea. HOWEVER . . .

2. The application of the CE certification is best described as follows: “An idea someone thought up and then never though through.”

3. I have done a lot of research on this subject since my first post last Spring. To date, I have not found two people that agree on any relevant information or guidance concerning this CE certification program. Everyone has their own idea of what to do when and how. One person says certify my equipment to “Choking hazard for small children” and another person says certify to “LVD”.

4. The main problem here is that nobody in the CE certification body, OFCOM or the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (whatever they want to call themselves) has taken the time to think out the certification process. What needs to be tested to what standard is harder to figure out than the 9,955th digit in the answer of Pi. Sorry, Lester – with all due respect – I have read the legislation and (true it is easy reading) but it is also full of ambiguity. There is no clear guidance that the average man or woman could make a decision on.

5. I totally agree with the post from “Hansknec” who basically stated that you could spend thousands of $$ of standards and 10 of thousands of $$ of testing and not even be sure that you have tested to the right standard.

6. To sum it up – CE certification is a GREAT program in theory. In practice – Good Luck! ! ! ! !

Once again – seriously, thanks to everyone who has provided their insight on this project of mine.